


Goodness

by Integral_of_Awesome



Category: Oz: The Great and Powerful (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canonical Character Death, Childhood Friends, F/F, F/M, Female Friendship, Female Homosexuality, Infidelity, Minor Character Death, References to Suicide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-04
Updated: 2014-07-22
Packaged: 2017-12-10 08:57:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/784217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Integral_of_Awesome/pseuds/Integral_of_Awesome
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even at the tender age of nine, Evanora knew to leave being good to the Glinda's of the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Tag, You're It!

Chapter 1: Tag, You're It!

"Goodness gracious!"

Evanora skidded to a stop and stood completely frozen, eyes wide with fear, for roughly three seconds before a streak of white barreled straight into her back. She landed with an soft "oomph" on her stomach, face inches from a pair of dark brown boots. Evanora tried to scramble up, but a weight on her back held her down, blonde hair tickling her nose.

The left boot tapped its toes three times. "How many times have I told you two not to run indoors?"

Finally, Glinda stood up, blushing down at the floor. "Sorry, Lady Lavender," she mumbled as she attempted to make make her hair look less like it had just survived a tornado. Evanora jumped up beside her and grinned because Glinda's hair was _the best_ when it was anything but perfect.

A small "humph" let Evanora know that her distraction had been noted, so she reluctantly pulled her eyes away from Glinda's fumblings and toward the glare leveled steadily at her. "We won't do it again, Mother. Promise."

Lady Lavender continued to hover above them, arms crossed, for a few seconds before the stern tilt of her mouth finally melted into a smile. "Yes, yes, and I'm quite sure that's what you say _every_ time, Evanora, my dear. Sometimes I think you're a terrible influence on poor Glinda here."

Glinda looked up quickly, finally giving up on the mess of her hair. "That's not true, Lady Lavender! Not at all." Her eyes were absolutely fervent. "Evanora's really _good_."

Evanora couldn't _not_ blush. Evanora was very pretty and very charming and _very_ clever. No one hesitated to tell her, and she didn't hesitate to know, but good was something Evanora knew not to fancy herself. Even at the tender age of nine, Evanora knew to leave being good to the Glinda's of the world. She would never be a "good" girl, and she was actually alright with that. Usually, Evanora didn't have much desire to be _good_ , but no one made good sound quite as good as Glinda.

Lady Lavender bent down until she was eye-level with Glinda and took her tiny, pale fists in her hands. "Do not worry, my child. I was only teasing." She smiled a soft smile and kissed Glinda's flushed cheek before rising to her full height. Her lush, pink skirt brushed Evanora's arm as she stood, and Evanora caught a whiff of vanilla. "Now, why don't you two run off--Don't actually run!"

Her voice echoed after them as Evanora dragged Glinda away by her arm, giggling madly. "Come on, Glinda! _Come on_."

Glinda dragged along reluctantly behind her for a few minutes before she finally broke, giving into a glowing smile and running a couple steps ahead of Evanora before spinning around and throwing her arms out. "If you could do anything," she said, voice breathy from running, "what would you do?"

Evanora grabbed Glinda's outstretched hands--it was basically an engraved invitation--and spun her around a few times. "Um, I dunno," she exhaled with another giggle. "I'd--I'd eat _all_ the cookies in the palace and--and make it so that no one could scold me about it!"

Glinda shoved Evanora's shoulder and pulled a face, but the laughter was still in her eyes, so Evanora knew she didn't mean it. Then Glinda let out a sigh and plopped gracelessly onto the ground. "I'd bring my mom back."

Evanora sunk down next to Glinda, the light of humor suddenly gone out, and rested her head on Glinda's shoulder. "Glinda." She wanted to continue, but she didn't know what else to say.

Glinda didn't say anything--not for a long, long time--and Evanora couldn't bring herself to break the silence. It fell heavily on her shoulders, like a thick wool blanket in the summer heat. Like the dark of the night when Evanora would sit awake and think that, one day, she would loose _everything_.

Finally, Glinda spoke, "It'll be two years, next week. Two years without her." Evanora still didn't say anything, just buried her nose in Glinda's shoulder, and she felt Glinda relax into her.

Glinda sniffled just a little, but the tears didn't spill out of her eyes. "My father is a great king and a great man," she said, voice fierce with determination. "It kills him every day, I see it, but he never stops. He never gives up. He has to stay together--for the people of Oz--so I have to stay together, too."

Evanora laced their fingers together, and Glinda squeezed hard. "He always says, 'She may be gone, but her spirit stays with the people of this land, and the dreams of the people will always live on.'"

Glinda's hair was soft and cool on Evanora's face. It had been devastating for the whole kingdom when the Queen had succumbed to her illness. The people had weeped and mourned and honored. The Queen was and would always be loved.

"As long as Oz stands, my mother will live on in it. I have to believe that. I have to."

It was a beautiful thing to say. It was a beautiful thing that Glinda, Evanora thinks very privately, was _too young_ to say. Glinda and Evanora were the same age; their mothers were pregnant together. Evanora wasn't enlightened enough to think past bedtime, and Glinda was weighing the whole kingdom on her tiny shoulders.

This was clearly something Evanora needed to remedy.

So, with that conviction planted firmly in her heart, Evanora shoved Glinda to the side with all of her might and sprinted off down the hall, yelling, "Tag, you're it!" over her shoulder and holding her breath until she heard Glinda's pounding footsteps chasing after her, giggles dropping in her wake.

 

That night, Evanora woke with a start, hands still trembling with panic even though she already couldn't remember what the nightmare had been about. She sat in bed for a long moment, unsure. She wasn't some _baby_. She was a whole nine years old, and she didn't need to go crying to her mommy just because she had a bad dream, but--But.

Evanora nodded to herself, determined that she would go to her mother's room and peek in the door--just so she could see her sleeping, then she would get a class of milk and some cookies, which her mother couldn't scold her about because she wouldn't know about it, and then she would go back to sleep.

With her mission set, Evanora snuck out of bed and slipped on her slippers to protect her feet from the cold stone of the castle. She crept through the hallways, throwing herself into little nooks at every little sound and whipping her head around to chase spooky shadows. After what felt like an eternity, she reached her parents' door.

If her father had been home, she would have had no chance of sneaking a peek without waking him, but he was away on business for the King--as the King's Advisor was so apt to do. Usually, Evanora was sad how little she got to see her father and longed for the days that he would be home again, but for once it was coming in handy.

She creaked the door open as slowly as possible, feeling like any moment her mother would shoot awake and scold her for wondering the castle alone at night. When she finally had enough room to stick her head in the door, though, she found the bed cold and empty, smooth sheets unruffled.

Evanora closed the door with a soft click and softer sigh. _Of course_. Lady Lavender was probably in library, either still or already awake, handling all of the King's Advisor's business left behind for her. Evanora's mother always worked so hard, harder than any man Evanora had ever met. She was so smart and so strong and _so beautiful_. She was Evanora's idle, her everything.

Resigned that she would have to fall asleep without even a glimpse of her mother, Evanora began creeping through the halls anew, this time with the kitchens in mind. Evanora's penchant for cookies with truly legendary around the castle, and everyone scolded her about it--the cook, her mother, even Glinda.

"It's never too young to start preserving your figure," her mother would say, and she was right. Of course she was. It was very _important_ for a woman to be beautiful. Yet--cookies.

She made it all the way to the kitchen without incident and bundled up a whole stack of cookies in her nightgown. Now all she had to do was sneak back to her room, past the King's chambers without waking him, and her feast could commence!

She wasn't really worried about getting past the King. The King was a very heavy sleeper. One of Glinda and her favorite games was seeing how far they could push the King before waking him. Evanora had once drawn a map of Munchkinland on his face without him stirring.

Yet, when she was walking past the King's door, she heard the click of the lock and threw herself into a nook before the door could open all the way and the King could catch her red-handed. She pressed against the cool stone, hardly daring to breath. The door creaked open, and Evanora heard mumbled voices before the door closed, and that was strange enough to compel her to sneak a peek into the hallway.

Evanora may have been a child, but she knew a thing or two about adult relationships. Men and women liked to…do stuff. Evanora didn't know the details, and she didn't _want_ to know the details, but she figured the King was lonely without his wife to…do stuff with, so she was expecting to see one of the maids or maybe even a lady from town. What she was not expecting to see was her mother.

Evanora felt dread sink into her stomach like an anchor, and she immediately rejected the idea. Maybe her mother had found something while in the library, something important that couldn't wait till morning, but--No. Her mother's smooth brown hair was in total disarray. She was wearing only her thin nightgown and the laces were all undone. Her lipstick, applied fresh and perfect after every meal, was smeared across her cheek.

Evanora felt herself step into the hallway, heard her cookies skid across the ground as she dropped the bundle of her skirt. "Mother?" 

Her voice sounded little and broken, like when she was six and that horrible boy from the kitchens had broken her favorite doll. She'd cried until her mother had come and soothed the tears away, saying that it was only a thing and things weren't as important as _people_ and Evanora would always have _her_ , but this time was different. This time, Evanora's mother was sneaking out of the King's chambers in the middle of the night while her husband was out of the castle.

Lady Lavender spun around, sheer terror etched into her face. "Evanora! What on earth are you doing out of bed?"

Evanora kept walking forward; she couldn't stop. "Mother?" she asked again, and she didn't know what she was asking. Why? How? Please?

Lady Lavender immediately began to tidy herself. Before Evanora could so much as blink, her nightgown was done up and her hair was smoothed. Her lipstick was still smeared, but Evanora forgave her that because she probably didn't even realize. "Evanora, dear, honey, it's not what you think."

She probably had more to say, an explanation waiting on the edge of her lips, but Evanora caught her eye and she stopped instantly. Evanora didn't know what she saw there--disbelief, cunning, fear--but Lady Lavender switched tracks with a sigh that Evanora desperately wanted her to hold in because it felt like she would let all her light out with it.

"You're a very smart girl, Evanora." Her eyes were sharp. "The King needs someone, now that the Queen is gone."

"But why does that someone have to be you?"

"He asked me, dear. One does not simply turn down the King, and--and--" Lady Lavender sighed again, but her eyes looked determined. "Evanora, the King is a very important man, as you well know, and there are certain…privileges that come with being with a man that powerful."

Evanora wanted to believe that because she could _understand_ that. "Do whatever you have to" was their family's unofficial motto, but her mother didn't _look_ like this was a duty. Her mother hadn't looked like this, eyes gleaming and cheeks flushed, in a long time. Not since-- well, Theodora, had her mother looked like this. Her mother looked--Evanora realized with a start that what her mother looked was _happy_.

"The King is very handsome," Evanora said carefully, letting each word settle on her tongue before pushing them out into the air. "The King needs someone since the Queen died, but you need someone, too, when Father is away." It felt like glass coming up her throat, but she knew it was the truth, and the way her mother's eyes welted soother the pain.

Evanora nodded, resolve renewed. "I--I understand, Mother. I understand."

The effect was instantaneous. Lady Lavender fell to the ground in front of Evanora, knees hitting the ground hard enough to bruise, and wrapped Evanora into a tight, warm hug. Maybe a little too tight and a little too warm, but with Evanora's whole world still spinning out of control, a little _too_ was just what she needed.

They stayed that way for a while, longer than Evanora was strictly comfortable with. Evanora cast her eyes to the ceiling and tried to ignore to warm, wet leak against her shoulder and neck because she had _never_ seen her mother cry, and she didn't want to start then. Eventually--finally--Lady Lavender rose back up to her full height. "What do you say we grab you some new sweets, hmm? I'll let you off the hook this once."

Evanora still felt a little sick to her stomach, but she nodded enthusiastically. Sweets had always soothed her stomach, anyway.


	2. No Good Deed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evanora swallowed tightly. "I had a bad dream."
> 
> Glinda's hand reached out in the dark, poking Evanora in the eye before finding her cheek and stroking it gently. "My poor, sweet Evanora. Bad dreams are simply the worst."

"I just don't understand _why_ you won't come with us! Please tell me this is another one of your silly 'Opposite Day' games?" Glinda pleaded for the fourth time that day. Glinda was actually starting to get angry at Evanora, which simultaneously fascinated and _terrified_ her.

The King and Glinda were going on their annual trip to melt the hearts of every citizen of Oz in order to ensure continued fealty and good spirits in the upcoming harvest. Evanora had been begging to accompany them for years, but she had always been too young or too rambunctious or too _cold_. 

No one had ever actually said the last one, but Evanora assumed it was implied. She'd known her whole life what people thought of her--what they thought of her family. She heard the nasty sneers thrown her way, people insulting her parents and marveling how even their young daughter can be so _coldblooded_.

"Look at her eyes, always calculating, always scheming," the old ladies in court would whisper when they thought she couldn't hear. "Just like her father, and her father's father, and her father's father's father."

"They're all the same, the whole lot of them," the young boys from town would say when she passed, speaking loudly enough that she was sure they meant her to hear. "You know they only serve the King because it's _profitable_."

Ultimately, Evanora was her father's daughter, and the slurs hardly touched her, but they hurt her mother, Evanora could tell. Lady Lavender hadn't been born into that life. She came from a perfectly respectable and well-liked family. Court had once buzzed with gossip that the King would choose _her_ to be his Queen. "Quite a shame," the whole of Oz had sighed when Lady Lavender chose the King's _Advisor_ of all her suitors.

Of course, the whole of Oz was fickle indeed, and soon their whispers and gossip for a future Queen turned to another young lady. A young lady who would give Oz the most treasured daughter of all time. A young lady Oz would sing, cry, and mourn for. A young lady so dead that she could do no wrong. Fickle indeed.

Yet, all the gossip in all of Oz hadn't stopped the King from inviting Evanora on the trip that year. Glinda, blind and deaf to anything not strictly _good_ , seemed to think that Evanora's maturity as a newly turned ten-year-old had finally tipped the scales in her favor, but Evanora knew it was something more sinister. 

Evanora had avoided the King like a new dress fitting ever since her unfortunate _discovery_ , and she didn't trust the King for a second, but she knew that her family had infinitely more to lose than the royal family if word got out. She didn't fancy being the one to ruin her mother's reputation, yet the King did not seem to understand that basic concept. He believed that Evanora would only keep her mouth shut if bribed with sweets and wonderful trips to Munchkinland.

A few short weeks ago, Evanora would have been gung-ho for sweets and wonderful trips to Munchkinland, but everything the King offered her now had a sour aftertaste. Miracle of miracles, this turn of events had actually curbed Evanora's ravenous consumption of cookies (to the unending relief of her mother, the cooking staff, and--if the way everyone acted about it was any indication--all of Oz), but it also meant that she was entirely _un-_ intrigued by the concept of spending many long days and nights trapped in close quarters with the beloved, bejeweled, _bedaubed_ King.

Naturally, she couldn't tell Glinda any of that. 

"I just really don't feel up to it this year. I'm very interested in my studies right now, and Theodora is getting old enough that she'd miss my absence terribly. She's my sister, and I love her very much. Plus, my father will get home while you're gone, and you know how little I get to see him."

Evanora batted her eyelashes and felt vaguely guilty about lying to Glinda. Truth be told, Evanora wasn't all that excited that her father would be back in town. Under ordinary circumstances she would relish the chance to learn by his example (since she was old enough to crawl, she had known she would inherit his position, and they really were so very alike), but given her mother's _situation_ , her father could not stay far enough away.

The King's Advisor was many things but dull was not one of them. If Evanora had discovered her mother's tryst, how could her father not? She didn't even want to _think_ what that would mean. So for the time being, she would be glad that the King was spiriting Glinda away to visit the peasants without her and would dread the arrival of her dear father. Opposite day? More like opposite _year_.

* * *

The night before the King left, Evanora woke from a dreadful nightmare full of shadows that hid in castle corridors and snakes that snapped at her ankles. For one brief, befuddled moment, Evanora thought to seek comfort in her mothers arms. It was a warm and happy thought, attached to memories of always being safe and loved, but that made it all the worse when it came crashing down around her. For Lady Lavender's arms would not be free for Evanora. Someone else was taking that comfort.

Yet, Evanora could not close her eyes without seeing horrible visions, and the thrum of her heart would simply not slow down, so she climbed carefully out of bed and tiptoed over to the door, feeling as though someone would jump out of the shadows any instant, but the door made no noise as it slid open, and the shadows remained completely docile. The hallway seemed to be even more villainous than her room had been, but she only had to suffer the ominous darkness of the yawning ceiling for the quick dash three doors down before she slipped inside Glinda's room.

Evanora couldn't see Glinda inside the mounds of fluffy white blankets and pillows that adorned her bed, but she swore she could see the blanket rise and fall just slightly with someone's deep, even breaths. "Glinda?" she called tentatively, suddenly feeling that sneaking into Glinda's room in the middle of the night was a terrible idea.

Before she could turn around and flee from the room, though, Glinda's head popped up, blonde hair a knotted mess around her head. "Hmm, Evanora? Is that you?"

Evanora stepped toward her bed. "Are you awake?"

Glinda smiled a large, lazy smile. "Obviously I am now. Come on, hop up here with me," she said, and Evanora really did not need to be told twice. As soon as Evanora was seated next to her, Glinda yanked the blanket over their heads, giggling as she went.

"What are you doing?" Evanora whispered, feeling she would shatter something important if she spoke too loudly. They were both sitting up straight with the blanket weighing down on top of their heads, and Evanora could just make out the outline of Glinda's face in the darkness.

"It's very late at night," Glinda said, words quiet and just slightly slurred in the way a person who has just woken up talks, "and this is how you talk when it's very late at night." Evanora still didn't entirely understand, but the cocoon of blankets dipping around them and holding them in did make her feel safer, somehow. "Now," Glinda continued, "what brings you here at such an hour?"

Evanora swallowed tightly. "I had a bad dream."

Glinda's hand reached out in the dark, poking Evanora in the eye before finding her cheek and stroking it gently. "My poor, sweet Evanora. Bad dreams are simply the worst."

Evanora nodded, slowly as to not dislodge Glinda's hand from her cheek. "What would you do, Glinda, if you knew something about someone else that you really wished you didn't? Something that could hurt all the people you love if unfixable ways."

Glinda was silent for a long while, and Evanora had just began to worry that she had fallen back asleep when she said, "Nothing, no matter how vile, is truly unfixable, and we can all only do our best and hope that those around us also do their best." 

Glinda brought her other hand up so that she was framing Evanora's face, and Evanora had a ridiculous moment where she was certain they would kiss, but Glinda just leaned their heads together so that their foreheads were touching. "Whatever you know, Evanora, it isn't your responsibility to control the actions of others. You can only show them your good example and implore that they follow you into the light."

By the time Evanora could manage words again, Glinda really had fallen back asleep, so Evanora simply laid down under the blanket and slept with her.


End file.
